mixtape maestro (2.0)

Whether Lauryn Hill‘s newly unleashed “Repercussions” is something new or old doesn’t really matter. It’s L-BOOGIE DAMMIT, and hell, we would go nuts over it if all it featured was her simply breathing atop a lone drum loop.

Thankfully, “Repercussions” actually involves lyrics and some production, with Hill’s much-missed husky alto wading through a shimmering sea of spacey neo-soul groove, reflecting on her own mortality (“Time has moved on/ And death has grown a little closer”) and offering a few pearls of wisdom along the way.

There’s, sadly, no rapping, and in the grand scheme of things, “Repercussions” likely won’t land as an essential part of the Lauryn Hill catalog (at least as is, this might just be a demo), but whatever, between the song’s unearthing and the earlier-this-summer announcement of Hill headlining next month’s 2010 Rock The Bells festival, we’re just happy to have a couple new reasons to keep celebrating our girl.

Grab “Repercussions” below, alongside a live performance of Hill taking on the 1970 Curtis Mayfield soul classic, “The Makings of You”.

DL: “Repercussions” (alt)

BONUS DL: Lauryn Hill “The Makings of You (Live – Curtis Mayfield Cover)” (alt)

Sheryl Crow and Justin Timberlake semi-duetting?…On a cover of Terence Trent D’Arby’s sexy 1988 smash “Sign Your Name”?…That’s done in the style of ’70′s-era Al Green? No doubt we’re sold, if only because the younger generation deserve to know about the artist formerly known as D’Arby (now Sananda Maitreya), a late-80′s breakout superstar who at one-time was showered with straight-faced praise of being the “new Prince” and “next Michael Jackson”.

Beyond that though, this tune (found on Crow’s new album, the vintage soul-themed 100 Miles from Memphis) is a sheer delight from start to finish, with Sheryl and a background vox-supporting Timberlake proving to be a far better-than-imagined white soul team-up, and its production work handling a spot-on re-creation of the lush Memphis R&B magic Al Green and producer Willie Mitchell reigned with throughout the 1970′s.

Wouldn’t mind if Justin opted to wrap his trademark falsetto on this old-school sound as well for his next project (Hint, hint).

100 Miles from Memphis, also featuring a cover of The Jackson 5′s “I Want You Back”, drops July 20th.

Sheryl Crow (feat. Justin Timberlake) – Sign Your Name (Terence Trent D’Arby Cover)

On “You Don’t Shock Me Anymore”, Cee-Lo is captured expressing his disappointment toward today’s music scene (“I believed in magic once upon a time/ When something had to be special/ Couldn’t see it online”; “Now all the rock stars are regular people”; “The glory days are gone/ I can’t hear my heartbeat with the radio on”) and while digesting his words, it’s easy to take on a similar sunken feeling in the pit of one’s stomach.

Not necessarily because you agree with the details of Cee-Lo’s bemoans (which we do), but because “Anymore” seems to hint that by not being so inspired by his contemporaries and the current ways of the industry and public music consumption, Cee is pondering an early retirement (in the words of KC & The Sunshine Band, and later…err, Double You and KWS, “Please don’t go” Cee-Lo).

Thankfully the track, one of many highlights from the all new cuts-pimping Stray Bullets mixtape Cee quietly released last month (pick it up via OnSmash), isn’t entirely depression-inducing, thanks to a 70′s supper-club soul/ classic TV theme song breeziness that compliments his soulful pipes perfectly.

Grab the cut below, then check out the (NSFW) video to the first single from Cee-Lo’s next (and hopefully not final) album Cee Lo Green is The Lady Killer, a cover of Band of Horses’ 2007 Cease To Begin single “No One’s Gonna Love You”.

DL: “You Don’t Shock Me Anymore” (alt)

You’ve got to have some major balls to take on The Spinners’ Stevie Wonder-produced-and-co-penned 1970 R&B classic “It’s A Shame”, not only because it stands as one of Motown’s most vibrant creations ever (bringing about instant feelings of joy with its opening guitar flutter and sunny horn blasts, and the group’s sterling background harmonies), but then-frontman G.C. Cameron just rocks the joint, his five-octave range bringing an awe-inspiring theatricality to the lyric’s cheated-upon protagonist role, veering effortlessly from heart-bruised falsetto to gruff soul-man belts.

Old-school R&B enthusiast Raphael Saadiq steps up to the challenge on this Levi’s Pioneer Sessions-supporting remake, and while we’re not all the way sure that’s him pulling off the falsetto notes, he nonetheless passes with flying colors, beautifully re-capturing the original arrangement’s spirited jubilance, while committing a stellar vocal performance (especially towards the fade-out) that has us itching for the man to release another (hopefully retro-themed) solo album as soon as possible.

DL: “It’s A Shame (The Spinners Cover)” (alt)

Previously noted around these parts for their excellent grown (indie) dude re-imagining of New Edition’s “Cool It Now”, Brooklyn’s Robbers On High Street show that there’s more to them than great covers on this early taste of their still-untitled third set.

Clearly inspired by the sounds of ’60′s and ’70′s pop/ rock, boppy new single “Electric Eye” breezes by on delightfully crisp guitar work, groovy horn bursts and some sweet male harmonies, all in the name of the title subject’s mysterious pull.

“There’s no shutting it off,” frontman Ben Trokan explains, though he could just as well be referring to the sheer contagiousness of this ditty.

Look for the 7-inch of “Eye” (backed by the equally pleasant retro dip “Face In The Fog”) to drop on June 8th via Engine Room Recordings, followed by a digital release on June 22nd.

“Electric Eye”:

Kinda making us feel a lil’ guilty for not putting more thought into the lame card and flowers we eventually copped (well, scrambled at the last minute to get) for our Maternal Ones on Mother’s Day, long-running West Coast Rapper To Watch (and Class of 2010 XXL Freshman) Jay Rock gifted his Mom’s last weekend by paying tribute to her in song for the holiday (Okay, we’re a week late…so what).

Rocking atop a slick sampling of, what else, The Intruders’ 1973 Gamble & Huff-produced classic “I’ll Always Love My Momma”, Rock’s “Love My Momma” is a touching one, tracking the gruff-voiced rapper’s undying admiration for his mother from birth (“After the doctors, the nurses wiped me off/ Your touch so soft/ I could feel the warmth of your heart through the cloth”) and childhood (“The teachers didn’t believe in me/ My Momma said the world needed me”), all the way through to his present-day adult-hood.

Expect Rock’s long-pushed back debut Follow Me Home sometime later this year.

DL: “Love My Momma” (alt)

BONUS DL: Jay Rock featuring The Game, Gorilla Zoe, Busta Rhymes, Lil’ Wayne & Will.i.am “All My Life (Remix)” (alt)

M.I.A. has never not had “something to say”, but who could’ve expected her next message to come packaged like this?

Unsurprisingly worlds away from the mainstream ground achieved on “Paper Planes”, Maya’s latest, “Born Free”, sees her celebrating her inner-rebel (“I don’t wanna live for tomorrow/ I push my life today”)
atop an unforgiving, and highly exhilarating, drum and bass assault seemingly built on the stuff of your worst nightmares (in actuality it’s sinister punk chug is based off a sample of synth-pop pioneers Suicide’s 1977 classic “Ghost Rider”).

While it’ll definitely take a good listen or two for it’s riotous thrashing about to soak in, the song eventually lands as another brilliant M.I.A. anthem, with the singer-rapper’s distinctive poetics (“I don’t wanna talk about money, ’cause I got it/ And I don’t wanna talk about hoochies, ’cause I been it” stands as a highlight for us) emerging from the apocalyptic murk as some of 2010′s greatest hook-chant work so far.

Look for M.I.A.’s still-untitled third set sometime in June, then proceed to have your…well, mind blown by the thought-provoking, but soooooo NSFW video/ short film for “Born Free” (Warning: features graphic sex, nudity and some extreme displays of violence) below.

M.I.A, Born Free from ROMAIN-GAVRAS on Vimeo.

Currently being given an early preview streaming over at NPR, Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings‘ fourth album I Learned The Hard Way (due, officially, April 6th on Daptone) unsurprisingly lands as another bravura demonstration of the electrifying front-woman and her nine-piece backing male accompaniment’s killer way with horn-spiked, retro-fueled soul that sounds like it’s supposed to be coming from an old, rusty jukebox in some Quentin Tarantino flick.

Highlights include the timely, “broke folks” lament “Money” (sample lyric: “I got to pay my bills/ I got to pay my rent/ I’m hungry and I’m tired but my money’s all spent/ Money, where have you gone to?”) and the lean backporch jamming, girl-group harmonies and pleading pipes that ignite the album-closing “Mama Don’t Like My Man”, but tops for us would have to be “Better Things”, a feelgood slab of wobbly soul-funk in which Sharon revels in walking away from a cheating partner.

The jovial handclaps and various horn blurts of the arrangement seem to signify the clicking of Jones’ heels as she heads out the door and down the road, giddily bopping with pride over her relationship-ending decision. “I got a new life and I’m feeling right on,” she beams infectiously, provoking the listener to reward her with a well-deserved standing ovation at song’s end, not only in honor of her strength, but as appreciation for her and her band’s continued excellence in bringing that old school groove back.

Erykah Badu psyched many when she launched the era of 2008′s New Amerykah Part One (4th World War) with “lead single” “Honey”, a flirtatious throwback-baked R&B gem that ultimately had little tie-in with the set’s highly-praised psychedelic freak-funk soundscapes and socio-political dialogue (no wonder it ended up being stripped onto the album as a “hidden track”).

The track would, however, make a perfect fit on the High Priestess of Headwraps second New Amerykah installment Return of The Ankh, a sort of yang to World War‘s yin that presents Badu making a return trip to the less experimental neo-soul sleekness of her breakthrough Baduizm days with a focus on more traditional matters-of-the-heart themes. Mid-album track “Gone Baby, Don’t Be Long” stands out as one of the better displays of this more streamlined approach to songcrafting.

Based around a seducing sampled loop from Paul McCartney & Wing’s mostly forgotten 1979 dip into slinky blue-eyed-soul territory (their minor Back To The Egg hit, “Arrow Through Me”), “Baby” employs Erykah’s always welcome girlish coo to capture the role of a girl with such “a fiendish crush” for a hustling chap, she barely knows what to do with herself whenever he leaves her side to start his “workday” on the streets.

“I know you got to get your hustle on,” she casts him off (while simultaneously winking to her early-career tune “Other Side of The Game”, which featured the same exact line), but while she’s projecting understanding on the surface, internally she’s bubbling with anxiety for his quick return so they can take their relationship to the next level (“I can’t wait to see how you move/…So gone baby, gone baby, don’t be long”).

Stream the song below, followed by Erykah’s thought-provoking, Matt & Kim-inspired clip for the enchanting “Window Seat”, and a MP3 offerings of “Gone Baby”‘s sample source and a “Honey” live performance.

New Amerykah Part Two (Return of The Ankh) drops March 30th.

“Gone Baby, Don’t Be Long”:

“Window Seat”:

BONUS DL: Paul McCartney & Wings “Arrow Through Me (‘Gone Baby, Don’t Be Long’ Sample Source)” (alt)

BONUS DL: Erykah Badu “Honey (Live Performance)” (alt)

To have Wu Tang MVP’s Ghostface, Method Man and Raekwon all together on one track, rocking their usually winning thug-in-love swagger atop a shimmering ’70′s soul loop, made “Our Dreams”, an early preview of the trio’s highly anticipated joint offering Wu-Massacre, an immediate win; and if we had to point out the track’s true star, hands down it would have to be “hook guest” Michael Jackson (the song samples his 1975 solo hit “We’re Almost There”), melting our hearts all over again with the awe-inspiring ways of his then-16-year-old pipes.

So why, after noting all the praise-worthy elements the original has, do we consider a remix version replacing MJ with Alicia Keys the better grab? Simple: A better production polish.

The one thing keeping us from completely loving the original was it’s mixtape-level beat-crafting: More specifically, the awkward chorus-to-verse transitioning. Whether this was done on purpose to retain a certain street edge or was an early rough draft misstep ultimately left alone doesn’t matter, because the jarring cuts completely erupt the song’s flow.

Thankfully, the “Ant Acid Mix” rights this distraction, mashing M/G/R’s verses with Alicia Keys’ cover of “Almost There” (a bonus offering from last year’s The Element of Freedom) with far smoother (and therefore aurally satisfying) results.

Hear the original here, grab the “Ant Acid Mix” and the full Alicia cover below.

Wu-Massacre drops March 30th.

DL: “Our Dreams (Ant Acid Mix)” (alt)

DL: Alicia Keys “Almost There (Michael Jackson Cover)” (alt)